1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to apparatus having means for facilitating the attachment of a leader of a roll of photographic film to a film take-up spool.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The present invention relates to apparatus which are adapted to receive a film cassette containing a roll of photographic film, e.g., a film processor such as is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,371,249, or a photographic camera such as is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,411,509 4,397,535, 4,314,751, 4,303,325, and 3,433,143, and more particularly to such an apparatus having a film take-up spool to which a leader of the film may be secured with a minimum of effort. While each of the apparatus described in the foregoing patents includes means for facilitating the attachment of a film leader to a film take-up spool, they all have one or more drawbacks. For example, in the processor described in the '249 patent, the operator must manually align an aperture in the film leader with a pin which extends radially from the take-up spool, a not too small of a feat when being performed under low light conditions or by an operator having poor eye sight. The same may be said of the camera described in the '143 patent wherein a leader must be inserted into a slit in a take-up spool. As regard the cameras described in the remaining patents, they are adapted for use solely with film having an aperture in its leader, which aperature is adapted to receive a protuberance on a take-up spool. Still further, they require guides to insure alignment between the aperture and the protuberance during movement of the leader toward the take-up spool and drive systems for so moving the film leader and rotating the take-up spool, items which add to the cost of the camera.
From the foregoing, it can be readily seen that there is a need for a simple and inexpensive means for facilitating the connection of a film leader to a take-up spool in a manner which requires a minimum of dexterity and visual observation.